COA maintained that the Malampaya consortium operator owed the government P146.8 billion in taxes in addition to royalties on the gas produced.

However, the Department of Energy argued that
the taxes were already included in the government’s royalty take of 60 percent of the project’s net income as provided under SC 38.

“If this Commission will not put an end to this illegal ?tax assumption? scheme, the government will continue to bleed billions and billions of funds that can and should be used for the very purpose intended by law,? COA said.

The consortium has appealed its case before the Supreme Court.

Malampaya supplies gas to power plants operated by the Lopez family’s First Gas Power Corp. and San Miguel Energy Corp, a unit of conglomerate San Miguel Corp..